Welcome to the East Chicago Building Department

Mission

The mission of the East Chicago Building Department is to provide a resident-friendly and efficient entity that will enforce the minimum standards for the protection of life, health, environment, public safety and general welfare. Our goal is to promote and maintain a safe and desirable living environment, which will improve property values and enhance the quality of life for all residents of the City.

Duties include:

Examining and approving or rejecting all building permit applications.Enforcing zoning laws.Inspecting all buildings in the course of construction or repair.Review and approve or reject applications for licensing of contractors and sub-contractors.Periodic inspections of one- and two-family and multi-family dwellings.Conducting inspections of complaint reports regarding permits/licensees, unsafe buildings, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, electrical, plumbing, swimming pool, debris, weeds, abandoned vehicles and fences.Issue orders to repair, condemn and demolish.Vacate unsafe buildings.Seal unsafe buildings.Conduct periodic joint inspections with Health, Fire and Air Quality Departments.Generally speaking, the services provided by the East Chicago Building Department are the same compared to the cities of Hammond and Gary, which are cities designated as first class cities. For instance, similarities include licensing, permits, condemnations and demolition of unsafe buildings. Also, it is significant to note that the City of East Chicago has an interrelated Code Enforcement Department, a division in the Building Department, which primarily handles complaints regarding Housing Standards and property maintenance issues.

The diverse staff of the East Chicago Building Department acts as representatives of our community. Moreover, there are several bilingual employees who speak Spanish, enabling this department to serve the needs of that segment of our diverse community.

RENTAL REGISTRATIONS 2015

City of East Chicago, Indiana Code of Ordinances Title XI, Chapter 123: Rental Housing and Ordinance No. 09-0020 require owners of real property in the City of East Chicago, to register all rental housing on an annual basis. The ordinance requires owners of rental properties to register annually at the East Chicago Building Department office, 4444 Railroad Avenue, East Chicago, Indiana, and pay an annual registration fee of $10.00 per each dwelling or rooming unit.

2015 Registration will commence on Tuesday, January 6, 2015 and received Monday through Friday between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 3:00p.m.

Registration forms and requirements are available at the Building Department’s office or on the City’s website at www.eastchicago.com (Departments/Building Department/Downloads 2015 Link). Property owners are required to provide, in addition to the completed registration form, the following to process the registration of their rental property:

A late fee shall be assessed in the amount of $100, in addition to the $10 registration fee, for each dwelling or rental unit not registered by April 15, 2015. Failure to register any and all real property utilized as rental housing shall constitute a violation of this chapter and the owner shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $2,500 per unit.

For additional information, please contact the East Chicago Building Department at (219) 391-8294 or visit the City’s website at www.eastchicago.com (Building Department link).

Rental Registration forms Click above and they also available in the download section of our site.